Assembly Will Barclay

A bill was recently put forward by a Manhattan lawmaker that, if passed and signed by the Governor, would do away with marksmanship, archery, and shooting programs in New York state schools. The bill would also ban gun safety classes on school grounds by prohibiting the use of firearms as part of the lesson. Under this proposal, highly successful programs and teams that positively impact thousands of kids each year would be eliminated.

The heroin and opioid crisis has touched countless lives and ravaged families throughout the country. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 60,000 people died of a drug overdose in the U.S. in 2016, five times higher than in 1999. That number is roughly the same amount of people who live in a mid-sized city such as Utica.

My office recently invited people in the 120th Assembly district to participate in a legislative survey and more than 800 people took the time to respond. The survey asked people their thoughts on the local economy, laws pertaining to drugs, child welfare, the SAFE Act, economic development, and health care. Not surprisingly, in this unscientific survey, the overwhelming majority of people are concerned about our local economy.

When the faucet is turned on, we take it for granted that clean, safe water will come out of the spigot. Unfortunately, as has been reported both nationally and in New York State, this is not always the case. In recent years, many problems have arisen due to aging water and sewer systems. In many cases, municipalities are dealing with systems that are more than 100 years old.

Libraries serve as a valuable resource for millions of residents in both rural and urban areas. In New York state there are more than 750 libraries. They are usually centrally located in communities and function both as a free and public space for events and provide key resources to people all ages. In addition to providing traditional services and educational resources, libraries provide free computer and internet access.

As has become an Albany tradition, the budget was passed in the early morning hours having been for the most part negotiated by what is known as “four men in a room” – the Governor, the Speaker of the Assembly, the Majority Leader of the Senate and the Leader of the Independent Democratic Conference of the Senate. The massive $168.3 billion budget is bigger than any other state’s budget with the exception of California, a state with twice as many people as New York.

In recent years, the state has made significant investments in our state parks. Specifically, additional funding has assisted in improvements at parks statewide and includes everything from playground equipment, entryways, beach areas, trails, and restroom facilities. Not only were many of these upgrades necessary as a result of age and preservation of our resources, they were strategically done to encourage tourism and increase park attendance.

As was widely reported, earlier this month Joe Percoco, a former top-aide to Governor Cuomo, was found guilty of three corruption-related charges. While corruption convictions of state officials, sadly, are nothing new, the Percoco conviction was front page news because of his very close relationship to Governor Cuomo. Also, the trial shed light on how a few connected people have tremendous control over billions of dollars of public money that is supposed to be used for economic development.

Our property taxes are among the highest in the nation. New York needs to make structural changes if there is any hope for reducing tax bills for property owners. Legislation has been introduced that would help alleviate some of this burden for Upstate residents and stimulate economic growth. For starters, the state needs to take over the full cost of Medicaid. Medicaid is a joint federal and state program largely administered by states and is paid for with federal, state and local funds.